John J. Berberian (born October 9, 1941) is an American musician known for his virtuosity on the oud, the Middle Eastern stringed instrument.
Berberian was born in New York City as the son of Armenian immigrants. His father, Yervant Berberian, was an accomplished oud player and an instrument maker. Oud masters of Armenian, Turkish, and Greek heritage frequented his family's home. John Berberian started his musical education learning the violin, but by the age of 10 began imitating his father on the oud. At the age of 16, he had his first job as a musician, playing the oud in a band in Whitinsville, Massachusetts.[1]
He expanded beyond the ethnic music market in the mid to late 1960s, decades before "world music" became fashionable, with a series of LPs which explored fusions between traditional Middle Eastern music, psychedelic rock and jazz. These included Expressions East (1964), Music of the Middle East (1966), and Middle Eastern Rock (1969) with guitarist Joe Beck. He also set up his own recording studio and record label, Olympia. Simultaneously with his career as a musician, he worked as a purchasing agent in New York.[1]
He was awarded teaching grants as a musician by the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts in 1996 and by the Massachusetts Cultural Council in 2004.[1] He has performed worldwide for over 40 years.[2]
john, berberian, john, berberian, born, october, 1941, american, musician, known, virtuosity, middle, eastern, stringed, instrument, berberian, born, york, city, armenian, immigrants, father, yervant, berberian, accomplished, player, instrument, maker, masters. John J Berberian born October 9 1941 is an American musician known for his virtuosity on the oud the Middle Eastern stringed instrument Berberian was born in New York City as the son of Armenian immigrants His father Yervant Berberian was an accomplished oud player and an instrument maker Oud masters of Armenian Turkish and Greek heritage frequented his family s home John Berberian started his musical education learning the violin but by the age of 10 began imitating his father on the oud At the age of 16 he had his first job as a musician playing the oud in a band in Whitinsville Massachusetts 1 He graduated from Columbia University with a B A in economics and received his MBA from Harvard Business School While a student he performed regularly in Manhattan nightclubs From the early 1960s he recorded for a variety of labels including Mainstream Records his first label 1 MGM RCA Roulette and Verve He expanded beyond the ethnic music market in the mid to late 1960s decades before world music became fashionable with a series of LPs which explored fusions between traditional Middle Eastern music psychedelic rock and jazz These included Expressions East 1964 Music of the Middle East 1966 and Middle Eastern Rock 1969 with guitarist Joe Beck He also set up his own recording studio and record label Olympia Simultaneously with his career as a musician he worked as a purchasing agent in New York 1 He was awarded teaching grants as a musician by the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts in 1996 and by the Massachusetts Cultural Council in 2004 1 He has performed worldwide for over 40 years 2 He is a trustee of the Armenian Apostolic Church in Whitinsville Massachusetts and lives with his family in Shrewsbury 1 Discography EditExpressions East 1964 Oud Artistry 1965 Music of the Middle East 1966 Middle Eastern Rock 1969 A Mid Eastern Odyssey 1973 Echoes of Armenia 1976 The Dance Album 1978 References Edit a b c d e The Relationship Hachig Kazarian and John Berberian The Armenian Weekly September 19 2014 Retrieved 1 June 2015 John Berberian Armenian Church Retrieved September 1 2022External links EditJohn Berberian discography at Discogs 2006 performance video on YouTube 2019 interview on YouTube Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title John Berberian amp oldid 1139105743, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
